Status Quo

The Greek capital has a population of about 745,000 (in 2001) within its administrative limits and a land area of 39 km2. The urban area of Athens extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of about 3,130,000 (in 2001) and a land area of 412 km2. According to Eurostat, the Athens Larger Urban Zone (LUZ) is the 7th most populous LUZ in the European Union.

ETHEL S.A. was founded in 1994 by Athens Urban Transport Organisation (OASA S.A.) and its mission is the implementation of urban transport services with thermal buses in the Metropolitan area of Athens. Ethel S.A. operates 2099 buses. Roughly 80% of them are diesel powered, while the rest are CNG powered buses. The propulsion used in the fleet of Ethel is conventional and the average annual mileage per vehicle is up to 50,000 km. The buses are used for public transport purposes in the Metropolitan are of Athens (urban and mixed zones). This purchase was co-funded by the 2nd and 3rd Community Support Framework and the Program of public Investment. The renovation plan of the ETHEL fleet (1998-2005) included the purchase of 416 CNG powered buses. There are also 2 CNG filling points in Athens. Their use showed noise reduction, while their emissions were lower compared to diesel busses. CNG fuel costs are less compared to diesel (appr. 10%).

Regional Information Sources

www.cityofathens.gr/en/

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athens

Status Quo

Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. It has a population of about 600,000.

For two years the Regional Energy Agency of Crete (REAC) along with other local stakeholders ran a pilot project involving high biodiesel mixtures in public buses in Eastern Crete. This was the first pilot project of its kind in Greece and is seen as a crucial test bed for future initiatives and the expansion of biodiesel into the Greek market in general. A wide range of stakeholders including REAC, the Public Bus Company of Eastern Crete, the Technical Centre of Vehicles Control of Heraklion and the National Technical University of Athens were involved in this pilot scheme. It involved a comprehensive work programme, including months of monitoring, control and evaluation in real conditions of mixtures of biodiesel of varying levels of concentrations. Two Mercedes buses owned by the Public Bus Company operating in and around Heraklion were used, fuelled with biodiesel meeting European Specification EN 14214. No modifications were made to the vehicles used in the trial. The testing found significant reductions in smoke density (opacity) of tailpipe emissions and a reduction of unburned hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide emissions were achieved.

Regional Information Sources

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crete